D’Arrigo Bros. upgrades broccoli rabe pack

D’Arrigo Bros. Co. of California is shipping a new retail pack of iceless broccoli rabe, modifying a previous offering to extend shelf life, among other features.

The 11-ounce bags come 12 to a pack and carry the Andy Boy label. It started shipping in mid-June, said John Scherpinski, director of sales at Salinas-based D’Arrigo Bros.

The broccoli rabe, known generically as rapini, comes cut and ready to cook.

“We had dabbled in it before, but unfortunately the (oxygen transmission) rate was hard to figure out for the bags,” Scherpinski said. “The respiration rate can be as much as two times regular broccoli. In the past we saw just too much yellowing. The science has made up so much ground in the last few years that we’ve been able to tap into new technology.”

D’Arrigo Bros. sees the product as an opportunity to move broccoli rabe from the cooking greens shelf at retail produce aisles to value-added.

“It should gain us some exposure to that shopper who may not even head to the commodity side of the store anymore, as we’re seeing a lot with Gen X and Gen Y,” Scherpinski said. “You want it to be just simple.”

It’s triple-washed; ends are trimmed.

“The bag can be torn open and the product dumped straight into the skillet or cut further for pastas and other dishes,” he said.